MASG chapter 92

 

Ultimately, Nixida failed to touch the bundle of tentacles.

This was not only due to the seawater barrier, but also because of Aituoda’s brave obstruction.

“Run!” Aituoda threw caution to the wind. He couldn’t bear to watch the compatriot they had finally rescued get eaten by a jellyfish.

Braving the risk of injury, he risked his life to pass through the chaotic tentacles. The trace toxins in the seawater began to take effect, compelling him to keep looking towards the jellyfish. An incomparable happiness churned in his heart, commanding him to rush straight into the jellyfish’s body the next moment.

Aituoda shut his eyes tightly, relying on his last shred of consciousness to pull the siren out.

“No.” However, Nixida was immersed in a wordless fantasy. No — don’t leave.

This was his blue light. He believed that he should grasp it firmly and never let it dim. It was not a trap of death, but something beautiful that should be held in his palm.

“Run!” But Aituoda did not dare agree, letting the seawater wash over their gill slits. This was his first time fleeing with a siren; he looked like a routed soldier who had thrown away his helmet and armour. As a mermaid who valued elegance above all else, he should not be acting like this. It did not fit with mermaid beliefs. But… but… when it comes to staying alive, there’s no room for elegance!

The trench was right in front of them. With great effort, he grasped Nixida by the waist and rolled into the ravine with him. His long, flowing silver hair wrapped around their upper bodies, making them look like conjoined twins. Once they had finally escaped back to safety, Aituoda stole a glance towards the abyss.

The patch of blue light had already expanded. One jellyfish after another emerged. Sure enough, what they had seen earlier was just bait. Countless more were hidden over there, revealing themselves only when their prey reached them. They were not mindless creatures—were they hunting them?

News that Blue Jellyfish were nearby was brought back to the territory, and Aibaoyin was overwhelmed. She was a young leader who had just found a place to settle. The young black sirens were willing to follow her, so she took on the responsibility herself. But one thing after another left her unable to cope. First, they picked up a mermaid. Then, there were human silver machines. And now, even jellyfish had arrived.

“Did you see the number clearly?” Aibaoyin asked her younger brother.

“Maybe a few hundred,” Aitoda recalled. “I’m not very sure. It might have been several thousand.”

“Were you injured?” Aibaoyin asked again.

She had already asked once, circling the two foolish mermaids several times. She had never seen mermaids this foolish, seeing jellyfish and not knowing to avoid them. She was frightened afterward, too. After all, jellyfish toxins could severely impair their judgment and sense of direction. “How close were you to those jellyfish?”

Aituoda shuddered. The fear piled up like a mountain and crashed down on him. “Very close. I feel like I might have been touched by the tentacles. Did I get poisoned? Am I already hallucinating?”

He stood up straight and looked left and right, scanning the faces of his sister and the others. From time to time, he slapped his own cheeks. Aituoda extended his fingers again. “Am I holding up five fingers right now?”

“Don’t be stupid.” Aibaoyin shook her head and pushed him down. “It looks like you weren’t stung. That’s strange.”

“This isn’t strange. They were just small jellyfish. They wouldn’t hurt us. I always feel like I’ve seen them before, and… they feel very familiar.” Nixida looked at his palm.

Although he couldn’t remember much, he was thinking clearly. His palm had just been that close to the tentacles, almost touching them. If the jellyfish had wanted to, its tentacles would have instantly pierced his palm and pulled him into its transparent, gelatinous stomach sac. At that point, escape would have been impossible. He would have become a specimen inside the jellyfish’s belly, slowly digested over several months.

“Small jellyfish? Is your head poisoned too?” Aituoda swam over and knocked him on the head. “That thing was over twenty meters long! That big!”

“But it didn’t attack us. It was very friendly,” Nixida said with certainty.

“Stop, stop, stop. Don’t argue.” Aibaoyin didn’t want to acknowledge it, but it was true that Nixida had brought some anomalies. “I’ll arrange for the girls to patrol this area. Don’t argue about the danger of jellyfish—that’s a given. Nixida, you might not know this, but quite a few mermaids die at the hands of the Blue Nether every year.”

“But…” Nixida still felt that they were familiar. “I guess they seem to know me.”

Such foolish words stunned all the Black Sirens present. They tilted their heads and stared at this hybrid. They had never heard of jellyfish forming relationships or social bonds with mermaid. Had he already been poisoned?

“It didn’t hurt me. It was like it came specifically to find me, to confide in me.” Nixida trusted his judgment. “It was as if it had something to say to me or wanted to take me somewhere. It was as if it were asking me to do something for it or asking for my help.”

Aituoda slowly swam over in front of him, face to face.

“You’re crazy,” Aituoda said.

“Am I?” Nixida covered the wound on his abdomen with his hand. “I’m thinking that maybe they’re looking for me. If I stay here any longer, will the jellyfish harm you? It’s time for me to leave. Staying in one place for too long will bring disaster.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Fearing that he had misunderstood, Aituoda wagged his tail and waved his hands at the same time. “I didn’t mean to drive you away. You can stay forever.”

“I understand, but I have to go.” Nixida patted his head. “Sorry. Whether or not my guess is correct, I just put you in danger. Don’t do this again.”

“All right. Everyone, stop arguing.” Aibaoyin didn’t want to admit it, but Nixida had indeed caused some anomalies. “With your current physical condition, you can’t swim to Haisiruola’s lair. I’ll give you another half a month. When the time comes, my brother and I will accompany you.”

Aituoda suddenly turned around. “You’re going too? Why are you going?”

“Because I want to find out exactly what is happening on the seabed, not just Nixida’s secrets. I need more information. Humans have already taken action against our race. They have studied us and mastered technology that can reach the deep sea at 7,000 meters. We must fight back. We can’t live here forever. When human silver devices can descend into the abyss beyond ten thousand meters, we’ll have nowhere left to go.”

Aibaoyin spoke forcefully. She was the leader of a small group and a mermaid herself. The situation was clear: something terrifying was happening on the surface, and most mermaids, including her, were kept in the dark.

“I will choose suitable people to temporarily protect the family in my absence.” Aibaoyin had already made up her mind. Despite her young age, she possessed precognition far beyond that of ordinary people. “I seem to have…seen a brutal war. Not just me—none of the mermaids will be spared. Everyone is…”

She suddenly pressed her aching eyes.

“Everyone is swimming toward the East Sea or fleeing. We have to… I have to think of a solution before that happens.” Aibaoyin lifted her face. Her eyes were redder than before, and her pupils were no longer visible. “That is…a scene like the end of the world. It absolutely must not happen!”

Black siren prophecies are always accurate. Aibaoyin covered her right eye again. Could the end of the mermaids really be coming?

One month later, Qingyao City entered summer.

Summer made plants grow more easily. Vine-like climbing plants spread upward along metal structures on a large scale, as if trying to touch the blue sky. However, the end result was still contact with the Sky Net’s high voltage, reducing them to dust. Yet there was nothing to regret. Life continued to try to break through the Sky Net’s limits.

Midou, Lao Gui, Silver Fang, and Yanxia stood together at the entrance of the former research institute.

“We don’t have clearance to go in. This is very risky,” Lao Gui said. He now understood why Talos had been unwilling to reveal this route for so long—it was harder than ascending to heaven.

“I have Ling Shi secretly supporting us now. Why not quietly give it a try?” Yanxia was already fully equipped.

It had been a very long time since she last wore special operations gear. Fighting side by side with Silver Fang felt like a dream. She thought that killing and combat were far behind her, yet the traces could never be erased. Just like the gun in her hand—as long as it rested in her palm, Yanxia could aim at any target even with her eyes closed.

“Ling Shi only provides us with a route. It doesn’t know what’s happening inside. It still has to avoid Nuwa,” Lao Gui said, shaking his head again. “I think we need to discuss this repeatedly. Midou, I thought your mom would stop you.”

“Actually, I was the one who stopped her. She almost followed us,” said Midou, carrying a medical freezing case. If they succeeded in taking samples, he had to get the blood out as soon as possible.

“I really don’t understand you bear types. Why do you all like risk and violence so much?” Lao Gui shook his head like a rattle drum. “Fine, fine. Once we sneak in, we’ll follow Yanxia’s plan exactly.”

Silver Fang moved his brand-new mechanical arm. His backpack was filled with essential survival supplies since no one could estimate how long they might stay inside the research facility—maybe several months. “Me too?”

“Of course.” Yanxia raised her brows slightly. “Even though you used to be my captain, now you’re my subordinate. If Talos’s suggestion is true, then it’s time to reopen the institute. I also want to know what the X Series really is. Maybe our understanding of X has been wrong all along. It isn’t a mystery but a hope.

The four of them looked lonely as they stood at the elevator entrance leading underground. The surrounding area had long been rebuilt into a cosmetic center that was gradually becoming more beautiful, with many medical buildings standing around it. Even breathing in felt like smelling a strong medicinal scent. Yanxia stepped forward first.

The moment she took this step, the infiltration operation officially began. Silver Fang rushed ahead, carrying firepower at the front. Yanxia was responsible for the right flank, and Lao Gui was responsible for the left and rear. Midou, the most crucial figure, was surrounded in the center, protecting the case in his hands.

“Ling Shi, I need a map.” When they reached the elevator entrance, Yanxia tapped her goggles.

The arc-shaped goggles were wider than ordinary ones. They covered her entire forehead and the upper part of her face, serving as a protective layer. The map provided by Ling Shi appeared in her field of vision.

Ling Shi: [I cannot guarantee the map is completely accurate.]

“Thanks. This is enough.” Yanxia pressed the elevator button.

But the elevator didn’t move at all. It seemed dead.

“Does it need an ID card?” Lao Gui pointed at the device beside it. “Not sure if it’ll work.”

“Let’s try it. I worked hard to become upper management. When the time comes to use my authority, I will.” Yanxia placed her left palm over it. A few seconds later, the scanner activated and rescanned her palm print.

The elevator lights, long unused, began to flicker. The sealed elevator was put back into operation, like a secret waiting to be revealed. Yanxia withdrew her arm and nodded in satisfaction. “See? Power really does feel good.”

[Welcome. Glad to be of service.]

An elevator door that looked almost torn in half slowly lifted and opened before them. Midou pointed at the crack. “Xia Yu said that when he escaped, he was chased by a robot. That robot ripped open this door.”

“Then let’s go down. It looks like Talos was right. There was no self-destruct program down there at all. Nuwa kept all the samples and data for the future. If the self-destruct program had been activated back then, the elevator wouldn’t be so intact—it would’ve been unusable long ago.” Yanxia stepped in first again. They had to act quickly and resolve the situation before Nuwa discovered their actions.

In the deep layers of the sea, three mermaids were swimming.

“It’s been half a month since we came out. How do you feel?” Aibaoyin asked about Nixida’s condition, turning her head to face him.

“Still okay,” Nixida nodded, hiding his fatigue.

“Based on your recovery speed, you’ll need at least six months before you can really move around. But I suppose you can’t wait that long,” Aibaoyin said helplessly. “Listen, up ahead is a twenty-thousand-meter trench. It’s the main gathering place of the Abyssals. If you encounter them, don’t stare.”

“Absolutely don’t stare at them,” Aituoda repeated as a reminder.

But Nixida grew even more curious. “Why? Didn’t you say the Abyssals are the weakest and most fragile in terms of physical strength?”

Just as he finished speaking, a sudden pain struck his back as if he had been viciously whipped. He turned around instantly, but saw nothing but seawater and the occasional passing fish.

“Shh, they’re here,” Aituoda said, immediately covering Nixida’s mouth. “Don’t talk. Just let them pass.”

What? They were already here? Nixida widened his eyes, hoping to see their scales. After a long while, however, there was still nothing. When his back was struck again, a thought suddenly appeared in his mind—could it be that the Abyssals… were transparent?

Transparent? He seemed to have seen something like that before… someone who could become transparent.